Shangri La to celebrate Pollinator Week

Shangri La Botanical Gardens and Nature Center is teaming up with Pollinator Partnership to promote “Pollinator Week” through Saturday, June 25 to help raise awareness for pollinators and spread the word how the community can protect them.

What exactly is pollination?

Pollination occurs when pollen grains are moved between two flowers of the same species, or within a single flower, by wind or animals that are pollinators. Successful pollination, which may require visits by multiple pollinators to a single flower, results in healthy fruit and fertile seeds, allowing plants to reproduce. Without pollinators, there wouldn’t be many crops. Also, nearly 75% of all flowering plants rely on animal pollinators and over 200,000 species of animals act as pollinators. Of those, about 1,000 are hummingbirds, bats and small mammals. The rest are insects such as beetles, flies, bees, ants, wasps, butterflies and moths.

According to pollinator.org, an estimated one-third of all foods and beverages are delivered by pollinators. In the United States alone, pollination produces nearly $20 billion worth of products annually.

Pollinator Week was initiated and is managed by Pollinator Partnership. It was 14 years ago the United States’ senate unanimously approved and designated a week in June as “National Pollinator Week,” which marked a necessary step toward addressing the urgent issue of declining pollinator populations.

“Pollinators are critical to the ecosystem,” said Jennifer Buckner, horticulture specialist at Shangri La. “The work of pollinators ensures full harvests of crops and contributes to healthy plants everywhere, so we want to raise awareness and encourage pollination.”

Located at 2111 West Park Ave. in Orange, Shangri La is open Tuesday-Saturday, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and guests never pay an admission fee. Patrons can enjoy the 250-plus acre space along the waterways of Adams Bayou that combines botanical gardens and an education nature center in a unique way.

During Pollinator Week, Buckner said Shangri La will provide guests with free tropical milkweed as well as pollinator plant seed packets that allow you to use in your own backyard garden.

“Tropical milk is a nectar source for Monarch butterflies,” explained Buckner. “The caterpillars will eat the milkweed, then the adult butterflies will visit the flowers for nectar.

“We will share a lot of information on our Stark Cultural Venue social media pages about pollinators, especially the ones we are familiar with in Southeast Texas.”

Kids can also participate in scavenger hunts during the week.

Shangri La Botanical Gardens and Nature Center was first opened in 1946 by H.J. Lutcher Stark and was inspired by the location of the same name in the 1933 novel Lost Horizon by James Hilton. His vision became a reality in 1937 when he began creating Shangri-La Botanical Gardens within significant acreage owned by him along Adams Bayou in his hometown of Orange. Thousands of visitors travelled to Orange to experience Shangri La’s wonder during the few weeks the azaleas were blooming each spring and the secluded utopia quickly became a popular destination for locals and tourists alike.

In 1958, the garden was largely killed by a snowstorm, leaving Lutcher Stark to close the garden to the public, where it stayed closed for almost 50 years until reopening in 2008.

Guests can escape the “everyday” routine and stroll along garden paths surrounded by fragrant flowers. Bird watch for hours or take a naturalist-led excursion along Adams Bayou to see the wonders of nature, learn about the environment and its care, discover animals in their natural habitats and spend time with friends and family. Enjoy the Children’s Garden that delights all ages, gain a new sense of environmental stewardship and participate in classes and workshops that promote “green” ethics and life-long learning for all ages.

For more information, visit shangrilagardens.org or call (409) 670-9113.

-Chad Cooper, Entertainment Editor